Another way to keep mosquitoes at bay in rain barrels is fish. I simply caught some from a fresh water pond and put 2-4 in each of my barrels. They’re small fish, couple of inches, but they’ve completely cleaned out my barrels of mosquito larvae and keep them free of them!
Yay! So glad you’re spreading the word on this hack. I harvested my AC water into a kiddie pool and grow bag / containers, then grew all these frogs too! For the mosquitos I added in mosquito dunks.
@@1337farm I think I did that to the water I collected that had no frogs and tadpoles. But now I know to just water my plants and empty buckets more often to reduce pesticide use.
We are so lucky in Florida that water availability has not reached crisis levels. However, saving a bucket here and there, especially trying different ways to regenerate key resources BEFORE we really must for survival, is a Good Thing, as Martha would have said. Thanks, Elise. And personally, if Elise, you gave me a green from your garden watered with condensate, I'd be happy to sample it after quick rinse. I trust that healthy soil and plants would make short work of possible dust and lint collected from the condensation coils. BTW, I have 2 Moringa "trees" from your seeds that cannot be kept down, even grown in 3 gallon containers. The leaves help with my arthritis pain, so they get regular haircuts, and they keep producing through heat, drought and drenchings. Thanks!
So cool! I was watering my seedlings the other day and noticed a pipe from the AC unit was leaking and I thought about leaving my watering can under the pipe to collect that water. But I wasn’t sure if it was safe for the plants.
I did something similar for the temporary dehumidifier setup in my garage. The county tap water isn't suitable for washing a car, so I'm sure the banana tree loves the condensation water treat. I'll have to come up with something creative for the a/c condensation. I have a lot less elevation to work with there.
I think unless we have spring (and even that can have issues) there is no perfect water source. Rain barrels can get stuff from the roof, rivers collect fertilizer, lakes build up contaminants, and city water has loads of chemicals and medicines in it. I havent heard of the metals but suppose its possible. I think mixing it in to water your plants when available is just fine.
I love this idea since here in Sarasota my AC runs about 350 days a year. As part of regular maintenance, twice a year my AC company pours chlorine in the line to keep it from clogging. Do I need to worry about that in the water or will it evaporate in a day or two without negatively impacting the water in the barrel?
I would be cautious about chlorine in there. Definitely leave it out to sit before applying any of that water on your plants, chlorine will evaporate but it depends how concentrated it is.
I just moved to central florida in May (the folks i bought from told me about your channel. They love you and left me with an amazing veg garden!). When I had to replace my AC shortly after closing, I posted on reddit about harvesting the AC condensation and was warned against it because of legionella and I guess the ph of the water is acidic? Do you know if there's a way to test/prevent this?
AC water is usually collected from the evaporation process so it is pretty clean, if you are still concerned about it you can order ph test strips online for cheap and dip them in your water to test it that way.
I would be sure to keep it off your leafy vegetables. The condensate can have dust and other stuff that collects on the cooling coils (like dead skin and dog dandruff). Our line runs underground and about every 2 to 3 months an algae sludge builds up from the stuff. Still a good idea, maybe just keep it off stuff you plan on eating!
I completely agree. It's better to rely on fresh and natural rainwater that falls from the sky, rather than expose plants in your garden to all that nasty stuff like dead skin, algae sludge and dandruff from the family dog. Rainwater's free. All you gotta do is let it fall - or of course there's a good old fashioned garden hose.
Maybe it depends on where the unit is? I've seen these myths perpetuated for years about condensate from AC units...claims of metals and lead in the water. These claims are false. In fact, plants are exposed to way more dust and animal hair, dander by just being outside.
@@Wee_Heavy Whatever. I still contend it's far better to leave plants unexposed to dirty water from an AC unit - especially because the risk of exposing them to dog dandruff.
You can find them on craigslist facebook market place sometimes even asking at bigger restaurants. just make sure they are food grade or you could end up with chemicals in it!
Another way to keep mosquitoes at bay in rain barrels is fish. I simply caught some from a fresh water pond and put 2-4 in each of my barrels. They’re small fish, couple of inches, but they’ve completely cleaned out my barrels of mosquito larvae and keep them free of them!
Interesting method, I'll have to look into this!
I was on a tour at Monica Brandies', a Florida garden author, and she uses fish in her rainbarrels and said they were really effective.
Yay! So glad you’re spreading the word on this hack. I harvested my AC water into a kiddie pool and grow bag / containers, then grew all these frogs too! For the mosquitos I added in mosquito dunks.
Thats fun lol I used to have a small pond when I was growing up and loved listening to the frogs at night!
Wouldn’t the frogs take care of the mosquitoes without poisoning the water you just “harvested” lol
@@1337farm I think I did that to the water I collected that had no frogs and tadpoles. But now I know to just water my plants and empty buckets more often to reduce pesticide use.
So cool Martha Stewart approved it!
We are so lucky in Florida that water availability has not reached crisis levels. However, saving a bucket here and there, especially trying different ways to regenerate key resources BEFORE we really must for survival, is a Good Thing, as Martha would have said. Thanks, Elise. And personally, if Elise, you gave me a green from your garden watered with condensate, I'd be happy to sample it after quick rinse. I trust that healthy soil and plants would make short work of possible dust and lint collected from the condensation coils.
BTW, I have 2 Moringa "trees" from your seeds that cannot be kept down, even grown in 3 gallon containers. The leaves help with my arthritis pain, so they get regular haircuts, and they keep producing through heat, drought and drenchings. Thanks!
Im so glad to hear that have been healing for you!! It truly is the tree of life!
I just wanted to tell you that you really helped me out.. I love your videos you're so smart
Glad I could help!
I use mine as well!
So cool! I was watering my seedlings the other day and noticed a pipe from the AC unit was leaking and I thought about leaving my watering can under the pipe to collect that water. But I wasn’t sure if it was safe for the plants.
Your intuition already led you there love it!
I did something similar for the temporary dehumidifier setup in my garage. The county tap water isn't suitable for washing a car, so I'm sure the banana tree loves the condensation water treat.
I'll have to come up with something creative for the a/c condensation. I have a lot less elevation to work with there.
It is definitely worth it! We get a lot of water this way and it is much better for the plants than the city water.
I’ve heard the condensate picks up heavy metals from the AC unit, and never to use it on edible plants.
I think unless we have spring (and even that can have issues) there is no perfect water source. Rain barrels can get stuff from the roof, rivers collect fertilizer, lakes build up contaminants, and city water has loads of chemicals and medicines in it. I havent heard of the metals but suppose its possible. I think mixing it in to water your plants when available is just fine.
sounds cool to me...grow some AC/DC plants
I love this idea since here in Sarasota my AC runs about 350 days a year. As part of regular maintenance, twice a year my AC company pours chlorine in the line to keep it from clogging. Do I need to worry about that in the water or will it evaporate in a day or two without negatively impacting the water in the barrel?
I would be cautious about chlorine in there. Definitely leave it out to sit before applying any of that water on your plants, chlorine will evaporate but it depends how concentrated it is.
Do you ever put vinegar in your AC pipes to maintain them?
I've been doing this for years now and it's great.
Definitely doing this! Thanks 😁
Awesome!!
You are so resourceful. That's what sustainability is all about. I saw the Martha Stewart piece. That was great. 💖🙏✌️
It is!
Martha Stuart watches your videos? That’s cool.
I was on her gardening show : )
@@TheUrbanHarvest That’s even cooler. That must’ve been exciting.
@@Anythingforfreedom It was but I didnt get to meet her in person. It was during covid so it was all remote.
Wow this is such a brilliant idea!!! Do you save your rain water as well?
Thank you! Our barrel is open on the top and collects some rain as well. We get plenty from this method and have a well too.
I have been using my a/c water for my plants. The a/c produces A LOT of water.
I just moved to central florida in May (the folks i bought from told me about your channel. They love you and left me with an amazing veg garden!). When I had to replace my AC shortly after closing, I posted on reddit about harvesting the AC condensation and was warned against it because of legionella and I guess the ph of the water is acidic? Do you know if there's a way to test/prevent this?
What about passing it through a filter of some kind?
AC water is usually collected from the evaporation process so it is pretty clean, if you are still concerned about it you can order ph test strips online for cheap and dip them in your water to test it that way.
I would be sure to keep it off your leafy vegetables. The condensate can have dust and other stuff that collects on the cooling coils (like dead skin and dog dandruff). Our line runs underground and about every 2 to 3 months an algae sludge builds up from the stuff. Still a good idea, maybe just keep it off stuff you plan on eating!
Keeping lines clean definitely helps. There is lots of "stuff" outdoors too though : )
I completely agree. It's better to rely on fresh and natural rainwater that falls from the sky, rather than expose plants in your garden to all that nasty stuff like dead skin, algae sludge and dandruff from the family dog. Rainwater's free. All you gotta do is let it fall - or of course there's a good old fashioned garden hose.
Maybe it depends on where the unit is? I've seen these myths perpetuated for years about condensate from AC units...claims of metals and lead in the water. These claims are false. In fact, plants are exposed to way more dust and animal hair, dander by just being outside.
@@Wee_Heavy Whatever. I still contend it's far better to leave plants unexposed to dirty water from an AC unit - especially because the risk of exposing them to dog dandruff.
Genius!! Tks for sharing.
You’re so resourceful. I want to do this. Where did you get your rain barrels?
You can find them on craigslist facebook market place sometimes even asking at bigger restaurants. just make sure they are food grade or you could end up with chemicals in it!
Great, don't hurt your hand, thank you very much for your efforts, dear friend❤❤❤💯💯💯👌👌👌👌
I think the coils in an AC unit are copper.
Great idea!
Glad you think so!
Great hack thank you.
Glad you like it!
What brand is the watering can?
It's from Home Depot! No brand name on it.
I need help my seedlings all died and my soil in my container smells like ammonia 😭😭😭
Oh, I don't use a/c. North of Tampa in Pasco county so this will not work for me.
Bummer!
Isn't it possible that it is bad water ?
Wouldn’t this be considered distilled water technically which isn’t ideal for plants because it lacks minerals?
Really
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